Custom stocks certainly have a firm foothold in the corporate gift, and promotional products sector!

Our industry research in Q1 has seen us attend shows and catch up with manufacturers to swap notes on the latest product innovations and trends. Socks were certainly a hot topic of conversation; let’s get you up to speed.

Why socks?

Most of us will wear a pair each day, potentially more. So socks are practical, with the potential for lots of brand impressions – the holy grail of corporate gifting strategies. That’s the average number of times that the branding on a promotional item is seen per month, multiplied by the lifetime of the product in months / years.

The aim is a quality product that is used regularly.

Socks are pitched at the wearer, not directly at anyone who might be checking out their socks! There are up to five brand impressions per wear; as a contact puts the socks on, as they take them off, when they go into the washer, get put out to dry and then as they go back into the drawer.

Know your target audience

Brand impressions are directly related to usability. Your promotional socks need to appeal to your contacts, which means getting the style choice and design right.

Fortunately, the range of options can respond to your brief. The headline categories of socks are;

• Casual crew socks
• More formal dress socks
• Sports socks
• Work socks – which include wellie socks, perfect for our agricultural clients.

Once the category has been identified, there are lots of technical considerations, examples include, arch or ankle support, reinforced heels and toes, cushioned soles, even anti-friction and slippage technology to prevent blisters!

The design strategy of promotional socks is important. The bespoke creative approach should reflect the brand subtly yet confidently. They need to have an emotional trigger, first and foremost, socks are a fashion item.

Here is an example of a sock specification, which we can develop to your brief.

Sustainable socks

As you’ve come to expect from Systematic, we’re committed to helping you gift greener. The socks that we have in mind will respond to that brief.

• Manufactured in the UK.
• Using sustainable materials, certified to the Global Recycled Standard (GRS), an international standard that sets and verifies recycled content, as well as social and environmental production practices.
• Production that eliminates hazardous chemicals and removes all unnecessary plastics.
• Accreditations that reflect social responsibility, such as Sedex.
• Sustainable packaging options include recyclable FSC paper bands and biodegradable potato starch bags, as pictured.

With all of these boxes ticked, we’ve reflected socks in our curated range of sustainable corporate gifts, within the branded workwear section.

Socks are a branded wearable that’s worth exploring and your logo and message will certainly come to life in the visuals that we can prepare for you. We’ll guide you through the next steps, with just one more pun, we promise!